Jerpoint Glass

Linda Clifford Scottish & Irish Merchant

	Jerpoint Glass Handmade in Stoneyford, Ireland - County Kilkenny Keith Leadbetter received his formal training at the prestigious Orrefors Glass School in Sweden in the late sixties. He then traveled extensively in Scandinavia & Europe, visitng many small glass studios. The experience had a profound influence on his approach to glassmaking. The Swedish design philosophy, together with is own personal feelings on form & color have blended together to create Jerpoint Glass. Keith, his wife Kathleen and their four children, Sally, Roisin, Rory & Eoghan, live in an old farmhouse overlooking the valley of the River Nore in County Kilkenny. The old stonewalled farm building at the back of the house is now the glassmaking studio. There are eight glassmakers who work in teams of two, making & finishing glass completely by hand, using the simple hand tools & methods that have existed for 2000 years. They use their own creative judgment to determine the correct shape of the finished piece. It takes five years for a glassmaker to acquire the necessary skills to produce Jerpoint glass. We hope you'll enjoy a glimpse of the loving care that goes into each handmade piece. Orders & enquiries, please call or e-mail Linda Clifford. Contact info at top of page. Care & FAQ
A gather of hot molten glass is taken from the furnace on the blowing iron.	It is then centered on the blowing iron by rolling it on a wooden block.	The glass is then blown to form the bowl of a wine glass.
The second glassmaker in the team brings small gathers of hot glass, which are added to the bowl to fashion the stem and foot.	Working with precision timing, the second glassmaker brings the puntil iron, which is then attached to the base of the glass. The glassmaker will hold the wine glass on the puntil iron after it has been cracked away from the blowing iron.	Holding the glass from the base end by the puntil iron, the glassmaker reheats the bowl of the glass in the gloryhole.
With simple hand tools, the glassmaker fashions the elegant Jerpoint shape.